IT'S a busy morning at the SNP’s hub in Main Street, Coatbridge, where Phil Boswell and a large team of activists are planning the weekend’s campaign activities.

Passing voters pop in for posters, stickers and chat, while constituency maps on the wall plot the delivery schedule of 50,000 leaflets and the party candidate praises the energy and enthusiasm on show as “staggering”.

He said: “The speed and rate of political change in Scotland is infectious. People have really bought into that and it’s incredible.”

The continuing level of public engagement in politics is much in evidence, not only in a busy hour chatting to shoppers in the town centre but when the SNP challenger heads over to join those enjoying coffee in the bustling nearby cafe at St Patrick’s church hall.

Discussion when the candidate joins one table works its way through foodbanks, social care, “benefits blame culture”, NHS funding, universal credit, relative merits of the prime ministerial candidates and the likelihood of a hung parliament.

The well-informed voters agree that it is good to have the chance to discuss election issues in person with one of the five candidates to represent their town.

Mr Boswell tells the Airdrie & Coatbridge Advertiser: “The issues that local people want to discuss are opportunities and lack of work, public sector and education cuts, privatisation through the back door through the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership and the way austerity is punishing the wrong people, the most vulnerable.

“We look for social justice; a safety net, prospects and jobs for working people. We’re about protecting the NHS, bringing in jobs, including looking for the living wage, building up small and medium businesses in our community as there’s real potential for growth here and the things we can do with devolved government, such as getting rid of airport tax.

“It’s about having a voice at Westminster, where we’d be pulling parties to the promises they made about devolution. The tail can’t wag the dog but the stronger our voice there, the better chance we’ll get powers to make a difference locally.

“We’ll work constructively within the system as it stands with other progressive parties to make change, stand up for Scotland and pass the promised powers up north.”

Noting “the Nicola effect” among those gathered for the day’s campaigning, which moves on to afternoon visits to community facilities in Glenboig and then evening canvassing, he said: “It’s fantastic to see how women have engaged.

“We’ve noticed more and more getting involved as they see women being empowered and having their voices taken seriously and a 50-50 gender-balanced Scottish cabinet.”

Mr Boswell grew up in the Summerlee area and studied mechanical production engineering, going on to work as far afield as the Falkland Islands, Hong Kong, Egypt and Qatar – via a two-year stint as a police officer in Ayrshire.

He said: “I lived through the Thatcher years decimating our heavy engineering and saw local industries closing down.”

The 51-year-old has worked in the oil and gas industry for more than a decade and is combining election duties with his full-time role as a contracts engineer.

More than once on the campaign trail he described fighting the Coatbridge constituency – just a decade ago, the safest in Britain – as “one of the toughest gigs in Scotland”.

But he insisted that the party’s ambition is to take the seat.

He readily admitted that, had his younger self been foretold of his 2015 SNP candidacy, “I would never have believed it”.

He said: “We don’t underestimate the task at hand but people who were Labour voters are looking for change and progression.

“We’ve been voting Labour here since 1931. Is this seriously as good as it gets? They aren’t delivering.

“People are moving over to the SNP because we’re interested in policies and looking after the people of Scotland. We’re not interested in X Factor politics. That doesn’t change your life or your street.

“We’re challenging established parties and we’ll look back at this in years to come as a step change. We’re going to work together to mitigate the worst effects of austerity and restore the powers Westminster has promised.”